updated 12:00 am EDT, Tue October 13, 2009

HP TouchSmart tx2 and 9100 made for Win 7

HP in gearing up for Windows 7 added two newer touchscreen PCs to its mix. The TouchSmart tx2 convertible tablet now makes better use of its multi-touch display both in the OS as well as in the new apps specific to HP's TouchSmart front end; users can watch Hulu or Netflix from the touch interface as well as update Twitter or stream Pandora and Rhapsody music. Unlike most such screens, the tx2's input isn't solely finger-oriented and will work with a stylus as well.

Inside, the new model is a mild refresh that doubles the stock memory to 4GB and the hard drive to 320GB at a higher 7,200RPM spin speed. It still runs on a 2.2GHz Turion X2 with a Radeon HD 3200 chipset for its integrated graphics. HP sells it on Windows 7's October 22nd launch for $799.

The TouchSmart 9100 is the business parallel to the TouchSmart 600 and shares the same 23-inch 1080p display but is skewed more towards use as a public PC: touch-aware apps have been made for Marriott and other businesses that can use these to replace custom-designed kiosks. Owners can selectively disable the optical drive, USB ports and other features to prevent abuse, but those that need it now have options of DVI and FireWire that aren't normally found on the home TouchSmarts.

The TouchSmart at $1,299 begins with a 2.1GHz Core 2 Duo, a 250GB hard drive, an unspecified amount of RAM and a new NVIDIA mainboard chipset that uses GeForce G200 integrated graphics. Most other details should become public when the TouchSmart 9100 ships in December.